Specialized Shiv

Jul 19, 2010
42,979

Specs

Specialized Shiv Module

Corima Tri Spoke Front Wheel

Zipp 808 Rear Wheel

Specialized Tritip Saddle

SRAM Red with R2C

The Specialized Shiv.

The very sleek, very rare Specialized Shiv is an engineer's dream. The bike reportedly exhibits some of the lowest drag numbers ever seen in a wind tunnel, and those who have gotten their hands on the limited supply of production bikes get to test that claim themselves.

About the Rig:

This Shiv is the production version of the "Shiv 1," too fast for the UCI, but perfectly legal in triathlon. We caught a rider who had just taken the bike out for its first race. He reported that the bike was a joy to ride. Still, there seem to be some odd choices about the gear attached to this very "special" frame (pardon the pun). Most notably, the wheelset consists of two different brand wheels: the front a Corima tri-spoke, and the rear a Zipp 808. Furthermore, the aero bottle this rider chose is the Arundel Chrono - not a terrible bottle, but Specialized makes its own aero bottle called the Virtue, which mates much better with the frame. The Arundel leaves a gap between its trailing edge and the bike's seat tube that the Virtue completely fills up. A little odd, but still a bike many will envy.